Refrigerator-crate



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. THOMAS & J. M. TRU'BY. REFRIGERATOR CRATE.

- Igg 555,835. x Patented Mar. 3, 189m llnrrn TABS JOSEPH THOMAS ANDJACOB M. TRUBY, OF STARKE, FLORIDA.

REFRIGERATOR-CRATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 555,835, dated March 3,1896 Application filed August 6, 1895. serial No. 558,407. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, JOSEPH THOMAS and JACOB M. TRUBY, citizens of theUnited States, residing at Starke, in the county of Bradford and Stateof Florida, have invented a new and useful Refrigerator, of which thefollowing is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in refrigerators.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction ofrefrigerators, and to provide a simple and efiicient one which will beperticularly adapted for shipping fruit and other perishable articles,and which will cause a free circulation of cold air through the entirecontents of it.

A further object of the invention is toprevent refrigerators which areemployed 'for shipping goods from becon'iing mildewed and rotting afterbeing closed and reshipped immediately upon the removal of theircontents, and while in a damp condition.

The invention consists in the construction and novel combination andarrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a central sectional view of a refrigeratorconstructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 2 is a verticalsectional view on line 00 00 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a similar view on line7 y of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the ice-receiving pan orreceptacle. Fig. 5 is a detail view of one of the valves of the pan orice-receptacle. Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of the camplate ofthe cover fastening. Fig. 7 is a similar view of the bolt of the same.

Like numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings.

1 designates a refrigerator designed for shipping berries, fruit, andthe like, and comprising a rectangular box or body, provided with aremovable cover 2. The walls of the refrigerator are provided withinterior airspaces 1, which are lined with paper 5 or other suitablematerial, and which are formed by inner and outer portions, 6 and 7constructed preferably of wood. The bottom 8 and the cover 2 areprovided 011 their inner faces with linings 9 and 10 of paper or othersuitable material, and these linings, which arefor the purpose ofrendering the body of the refrigerator a non-conductor of heat, are

designed to be secured to the body by a suit-' able adhesive mixture.

The cover is detachably secured to the body by fastening devicescomprising bolts 11 adj ustably mounted on the body at the upper edgesthereof, and provided at their upper ends with enlarged heads, andcamplates 11 mounted on the cover and provided with a slot or opening topermit the head of the bolt to be passed through it. The slot and thehead of the bolt are oblong, and the latter is adapted to be turnedtransversely of the slot to lock the cover in position. The plate 11 isprovided at opposite sides of the slot with cam-ridges 11 to be engagedby the head, and the body has a nut 11, which renders the boltadjustable.

lVithin the refrigerator, at the top thereof, is supported a removableice-receiving pan or receptacle 12,constructed,preferably, of sheetmetal and supported at intervals by horizontal bottom bars or cleats,13, and vertical side and end cleats, 14, connected with the horizontalbars or cleats by Lshaped plates 15. The bottom bars or cleats, 13, andthe lower ends of the vertical cleats it rest upon shoulders formed bysupporting-bars 16 and 17, secured to the inner faces of the sides andend of the body of the refrigerator.

The pan or receptacle 12 is provided witha central opening 18 in itsbottom, and has an upwardly projecting vertically-disposed flange 19surrounding the same, and formed integral with the bottom of the pan orreceptacle, and the pan or receptacle is provided around the opening 18with a depression forming a gutter 20, adapted to receive and collectthe water resulting from the melting of ice. The Water escapes throughopenings 21, located at the ends of the depression or gutter 20, and isdelivered into discharge-tubes 22, disposed vertically in therefrigerator and located at the ends of the gutter 20.

The ice-receptacle is not claimed in the present application, as itforms a part of the subject-matter of the application filed by us August6, 1895, Serial No. 558,406, and is claimed therein.

The perforations or openings 21 are covered with Wire-gauze or otherforaminous material to exclude sawdust or the like from the dischargepipes or tubes. The discharge pipes or tubes pass through the bottom ofthe body of the refrigerator, and they are provided at their upper endswith flared tapering portions 23, forming receptacles for sponges 2et orother absorbent material, which will permit water to drip through it,and which will exclude the warm atmospheric air from the refrigeratorand prevent the same from ascending the discharge pipes or tubes andpassing into the refrigerator. The sponges 24, or other absorbentmaterial, are secured in the enlarged or flared portions of thedischarge pipes ortubes by springs 25, and the material is sufficientlycompressed to prevent any liability of it passing downward and outthrough the discharge pipes or openings.

In order to prevent the ice from closing the opening 18 of the bottom ofthe pan. or receptacle 12, and thereby interfering with the freecirculation of air in the refrigerator, screens 26 are mounted atopposite sides of the opening, and are supported at the top by parallelrods 27. A series of vertically-disposed posts 28 are arranged betweenthe vertical screens 26, and these posts are arranged at intervals andare located at the ends of the screens and at intermediate points, andwhen the pan or receptacle 12 is within the refrigerator they have theirlower ends resting upon a series of uprights 29. The screens are securedto the posts by metal straps 30, or the like, extending over the upperends of the post and arranged on the outer faces of the screens. Thesescreens 26 prevent the ice from getting directly over and closing orpartially closing the opening 18, and by these means an uninterruptedcirculation of air is provided throughout the entire refrigerator. Thecold air at the top of the refrigerator descends through the centralopening 18, and the slightly-warmer air at the bottom of therefrigerator rises to take the place of the cold air, and the entirecontents of the refrigerator are subjected to this continuouscirculation of cold air.

The upright-s 29 are disposed centrally of the refrigerator, and arelocated at the same intervals as the post 28, and they are connectednear their upper ends by horizontal bars 31, which also assist insupporting the flared portions of the discharge pipes or openings.

The pan or receptacle 12 is provided on its exterior, adjacent to theopenings or perforations 21, with pivoted cut-offs or valves 32, whichare pivoted intermediate of their ends and have one portion arranged tocover the perforations or openings 21, and have their other ends pivotedto vcrtically-movable operating bars or slides or slides 33 are providedat their upper ends with arms, and are adapted to be raised when it isdesired to remove the pan or receptacle to close the perforations 21, toprevent any The operating bars water that may be within the pan at thetime of the removal from dripping out during the removal. When thecut-offs or valves 32 are closed, the upper ends of the slides or bars33 project above the pan or receptacle in position to be engaged by thecover 2 when the latter is replaced; Should the cut-offs or valves beclosed when the cover is placed on the body of the refrigerator theslides or bars will be depressed and the cut-offs or valves open, andthis construction prevents any liability of the valves remaining closedwhile the goods are in transit, and causing the water resulting from themelting of the ice to overflow and soak the contents of the refrigerator.

The refrigerator is provided at its bottom with a discharge-opening 34,over which is secured a sponge 35, or other absorbant material, andwhich permits the escape of any water accumulating at the bottom of therefrigerator. The sponge also prevents the entrance of warm air throughthe opening 34.

It has been found by experience that if a refrigerator be closed andreshipped afterthe removal of its contents, and when in a dampcondition, the refrigerator will become mildewed and will rot, and inorder to prevent this result and to enable the refrigerator to beimmediately reshipped as soon as its contents are removed,ventilating-openings 36 are provided at opposite sides or ends of therefrigerator. These openings are provided with thimbles, and are closedwhen the refrigerator is in use by automatically-opening doors 37,hinged at their tops to the refrigerator at a point above the openings36, and arranged to swing downward to close the openings. The doors arespring-actuated in opening, and are provided with a suitable padding 38011 their contacting faces, in order that they may lit tightly againstand effectually close the openings 36, and also to render the doorsnon-conductors of heat.

The springs 39 are disposed at the tops of the hinged doors and arearranged to swing the doors open as soon as the latter are free to swingupward. The doors are held closed by the contents of the refrigerator,as clearly illustrated in Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings, in whichone side of the refrigerator is shown containing fruit-boxes 30 andremovable division trays or partitions 40; but the contents may bevaried if desired, as will be readily understood.

The lower edge of each door is rabbeted and is adapted to be engagedautomatically by a pivoted latch-bar 41 having its upper edge rabbeted,and engaged at its lower edge bya spring 42. The spring 42 is arrangedto throw the pivoted latch-bar upward. The latch-bar is pivoted to avertically-disposed operatingbar 43, which extends upward to the top ofthe refrigerator, in position to be engaged by the cover, and as soon asthe latter is taken off to permit the removal of the contents of therefrigerator the spring 42 operates to throw the pivoted latch-barupward into engagement with the hinge door. After the contents of therefrigerator have been removed, the cover or top is replaced and therefrigerator reshipped without allowing any time before reshipping forthe refrigerator to dry. The replacing of the cover depresses the bars43 of the pivoted latch-bars 41, thereby disengaging the spring-actuateddoors 37, which immediately open and cause the refrigerator to beventilated and become dried during its return shipment.

\Vhen the refrigerator reaches the place from which it was firstshipped, it will be in condition for refilling and reshipment, and thedurability of it is greatly increased.

It will be seen that the refrigerator is capable of affording a freecirculation of cold air to its entire contents, and that the arrangementof the horizontal bars or cleats 13 on the bottom of the ice-pan orreceptacle forms air-spaces above the contents of the refrigerator, andthat the pan or receptacle will not be in actual contact with the fruitor other contents.

It will also be apparent that the cut-oil's or valves of the pan orice-receptacle are automatically opened when the cover of therefrigerator is placed in position, that when the refrigerator is emptythe replacement of the cover uncovers the ventilating-openings, and thatit is impossible for the refrigerator to be shipped with the cut-offsaccidentally closed when the refrigerator is full or the hinged doorsaccidentally closed when the refrigerator is empty.

arranged to project at the top of the refrigerator, and a removablecover arrangeu to engage the bar, whereby the door will be automaticallyreleased when the cover is in position, substantially as described.

2. In a refrigerator, the combination of a box or body provided with anopening for ventilating it, a cover, an automaticallyopening doorarranged to cover the ventilating-opening, a pivoted latch engaging thedoor to hold the same closed,and an operatin gbar connected with thelatch and arranged to be engaged by the cover to release the door, andmeans for throwing the latch automatically in engagement with the doorwhen the cover is removed, substantially as described.

3. In a refrigeratory the combination of a body or box, a removableice-receiving pan or receptacle arranged within the box or body andprovided with a discharge-opening, a cover for the body or box, acut-off arranged to cover the discharge-opening of the pan orreceptacle, and an operating rod or bar connected with the cut-off andarranged to be engaged by the said cover, whereby the cut-off isautomatically opened when the cover is placed in position, substantiallyas described.

4. I11 a refrigerator, the combination of a box or body provided with aventilating-opening, an automatically-opening door arranged to cover theventilating-opening, a catch or latch for holding the door in its closedposition, a removable cover for the box or body, and means forautomatically throwing the catch or latch out of engagement with thedoor when the cover is placed in position on the box or body,substantially as described.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own we have heretoaffixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

JOSEPH THOMAS. J AOOB M. TRUBY. \Vitnesses for Joseph Thomas:

JOHN H. SIGGERS,

W. B. HUDSON. W'itnesses for Jacob M. Truby:

WV. ELLERY DAVIS, ANDREW FLoREUs.

